A Tale of Fire & Ice
by AGleefulEnding
Summary: Based on a tumblr post (details inside). Post-movie setting. Elsa is tired of being presented with King consorts-to-be and not even so sure if she likes the idea of having someone to rule alongside her. When the fiery daughter of visiting Arab royals catches Elsa's attention however, it's not long before the idea of a royal partner becomes enticing. OC. T for now.
1. Introduction

Hello there! This story is inspired by a tumblr post made by **adventuresofcesium**:  
_"a sequel to frozen where elsa's advisors are all imploring her to find a nice prince to marry to be the king consort and elsa just isn't interested in anyone until an arab royal family comes to visit to discuss trade arrangements and elsa meets their spunky hijabi daughter who has the power to manipulate fire and heat and falls in love instantly"_

I have done some research into the Arabian aspects of this story, but I am in no way an expert of anything mentioned in this tale and I'll never claim to be, so when it comes time for all that- feel very free to offer constructive criticism and cultural corrections. Other than that, all I have to say is that I have no concrete plans for this story (yet!) and I apologize for this first segment being rather short; consider it an Introduction.

* * *

Elsa collapsed backwards onto her bed. Nine princes. They had made her entertain nine different princes and their families in a day. Nine! It was ludicrous. Even if the suitors had all been graceful and demure specimens, she still would have been thoroughly exhausted from all the forced interaction.

"And they weren't even attractive!" Elsa threw her hands up and let them fall to cover her eyes, knees drawing up into her chest despite the long and heavy skirt of her dress. She allowed herself to stay in that position on her side for a while, enjoying the darkness that her palms provided and the soft pillows under her head. Eventually she counted down from ten and pulled herself into a seated position.

_At least the worst is over, now I just have to see them off at the docks in the morning, that's all. _Despite the future plans being far easier than today's, the mere thought of more formalities had Elsa groaning and rubbing her temples. She was just considering fetching her chambermaid to draw a hot bath when a rapt knocking broke her musing.

"Your Majesty?" The inquiring voice was familiar and Elsa allowed Kai's entry with warmth. "Good evening, your highness. Sorry to bother you at such a late hour. A messenger just arrived at the gates with news that His Majesty the King of Saudi Arabia and his family will be arriving earlier than expected. They're due to drop anchor around noon tomorrow."

"Oh." Elsa collected her thoughts for a minute. She and the King were originally to have a meeting three nights from now about their kingdoms' current trade agreements. It was really just a formality their parties had been doing for years to renew contracts, but even so, Elsa had been glad for the planned rest time in between hosting her suitors today and the meeting. It would appear now that there simply was no time to relax between royal duties_. I suppose I really will be needing that bath tonight._

"Well," She began slowly, letting her fingers begin removing the pins holding her hair up tightly, "I don't believe there is anything we can do except to move the preparations up. If the messenger is still here, let them know that the castle of Arendelle will have her doors open in time for their safe arrival."

Kai nodded and turned to make his way out when Elsa quickly called his attention.

"Would you mind too terribly finding Gerda and having her draw a bath?"

"Of course, your Majesty." And with that Elsa was left in silence again. She hummed to herself, letting her mind wander over the princes from earlier today and to the future meeting as she unraveled her thick braid. A few minutes later, Gerda entered with enough hot water to fill the porcelain bath in the adjoining room and bid her a quiet goodnight.

Not wanting to have the water cooling on her soon, Elsa quickly changed behind her partition and slipped into the spacious tub. Eyes closed, the Queen tipped her head back and attempted to loosen her muscles. _Hopefully this meeting will go as smoothly as before._


	2. Ch1 A Book Affair

The final ship began its trek out to sea and Elsa let out the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. The last prince had been especially adamant that they meet again soon and although the Queen had maintained her pleasant facade, her nerves were now on end; it was all she could do to not throw her gloves into the water after the somewhat sweaty, eager boy had shaken her hands so many times.

While her younger sister, Anna, may have liked the energetic personality of the latest suitor, Elsa herself just found it tiring. _Doesn't matter_, she thought with a distant smile,_ I'm sure her and Kristoff are enjoying themselves plenty on their honeymoon._

The newly wed royal couple had left almost a fortnight ago and the last Elsa had received word, the two were admiring the canals of Venice. The Queen didn't expect her sister to be returning anytime soon which left a bit of a hole in her heart. The two had gotten very close after her powers had spiraled out of control before and caused the "Great Thaw", or so the townspeople called the unnatural winter. It didn't matter though, as long as Anna was happy, Elsa would try to be.

"The carriage is ready, your Majesty" Elsa's head guard informed her, opening the cab's door with a bow. With a nod, Elsa gracefully ascended the step and slid onto the leather bench. Adjusting her skirts, she sat straight and stared ahead. Though outwardly she remained stoic, her thoughts were already rushing ahead to the meeting later that day. _What if her guests arrive in Arendelle even earlier than anticipated? What if they had intentionally left ahead of time because there was a contractual problem? _

Fingers twisting in her lap, Elsa told herself to take a few deep breaths. _Perhaps the captain of their ship simply made excellent time. Maybe the currents were stronger than expected. _Even though she knew it was fruitless to worry, the Queen did so the entire ride back to the castle and up into her study.

For the next few hours, Elsa reviewed the day to day inquires and reread last year's contracts with the Saudi Arabian empire. Just in time for lunch, Kai informed the Queen that the Arabian vessel had been spotting entering the fjord.

Having smoothed her dress and making some small adjustments to the slender crown upon her head, the Queen followed her loyal servant to the castle's great hall where the doors were being opened just in time for the relatively small procession.

An Arendelle carriage surrounded by several guards of mixed colors came to a gentle halt before the castle's grand entryway. A local guardsman opened the cabin's door while an Arab man offered his hand to help the royals descend.

The King and his family emerged wearing their rich red and green tones. Each visiting royal donned their colors upon their heads in their respective keffiyehs and hijabs and in their detailed robes. Once they were all comfortably away from the carriage, the King swept his arm out with a deep bow. His two sons followed suit quickly along with his wife and only daughter. The Queen of Arendelle returned the action of respect and invited the royals to join her in the dining hall.

Without much noise at all, Elsa led the party to the room and signaled her staff to begin serving the dishes. The Queen took the head of the table with the King to her right, as most honorable guest. The two boys sat farthest away and so to Elsa's left resided the Saudi Arabian Queen with her daughter on her other side.

Elsa had yet to properly see the faces of any of the visitors closer to her age as all required formalities were to be directed to the King. The two exchanged pleasantries and brief statements about their kingdoms' welfare while slowly consuming the local delicacies at the table. When it seemed everyone had finished eating, Elsa asked the regal man if he was ready to proceed with their meeting and had Kai and Gerda, who had been silently standing along the walls, lead the rest of the royals towards the guest chambers.

The meeting itself was no different than previous years. Some percentages were adjusted for this past season's harvests and expected trading rates, but other than that it was hardly captivating. Elsa's advisors nevertheless kept very detailed accounts of all agreements and at their insistence, had duplicates of all documents for both parties.

With a final firm handshake, Elsa informed the Arab King that he and his family were welcome to stay in Arendelle as long as they pleased and had access to all the unlocked rooms in the castle and its grounds. The impressive nobleman thanked her and the two retired to their respective rooms for some time.

* * *

On the rare occasions that the Queen had time to relax, one could nearly always find her in the castle's library, rain or shine.

And indeed, today was no different.

Elsa was curled up in her favorite armchair at the far right corner of the old room, lazily turning the pages of a thick and aged French novel when she heard one of the old wooden doors creak open. At first, the Queen merely assumed it was a servant coming in to dust or maybe even relay her a message. However, when no other sounds followed, Elsa found herself slowly sliding her feet onto the ground.

Dog earing her page and placing the book quietly onto a side table, Elsa took a few steps forwards and tentatively raised a hand to her mouth.

"Is someone there?"

Silence was her answer and the Queen felt herself grow unsure. Most likely, it was just a shy servant who had either backed out of the room already or was now hiding and hoping for the Queen to forget their presence. Never one to take unnecessary chances, Elsa sucked in a quick breath and let her power gather in her fingertips, which were now twitching at her sides.

"Hello?" Her voice sounded so small even to her own ears and she had to admit that it was entirely possible the other person had never heard either of her gentle calls. Elsa cleared her throat and turned back around to grab her novel. _I guess I'll just finish this chapter in my room-_

"Whoa!" Elsa jumped and spun around. With her hand still outstretched, head tilted to the side and staring with a heated intensity, was the Arab King's daughter.

* * *

Some small but insistent part of Elsa's brain was telling her to break eye contact, something about directly staring at Arab women, but the Queen found she couldn't look away. It wasn't until the slightly shorter woman had blinked and brought her hand inward to her chest that Elsa relaxed. She felt the supernatural coolness slip away from her fingers as she reached up to brush back a strand of fair hair that had fallen in her surprise. Realizing that this situation could only get worse if she said nothing, Elsa began to hurriedly search for the correct words.

"Are you l-lost?" It was the best the Queen could come up with, stuttering a bit on the last word. "This is the library."

The girl was now refusing to meet Elsa's eyes much to the latter's dismay, yet she stood with a confidence that made Elsa believe the princess was well aware of her current location. The Queen could have smacked herself in the head, _obviously this is a library_. Just as Elsa was about to try redemption with another question, the darker skinned girl spoke up.

"I am aware this is the library, your Majesty. My father informed me that we would be staying in Arendelle for some weeks and so I thought I may as well begin my, _ahh…_" The girl paused here for a moment, pulling her hijab closer to her face. "…explorations of your fine castle."

Elsa found herself nodding, finding that to be quite a reasonable answer. Although she knew it wasn't entirely courteous, the Queen found herself seeking out the other woman's eyes. Her eyes had burned with such a glow when she had first surprised the Queen that Elsa was intent on catching at least another glimpse.

"Well, Princess…?" Elsa erred and ducked her head, embarrassed that she couldn't recall her guest's name. Her hands twisted together and she pulled at the fingertips of her gloves. She knew this, she remembered finding the name pleasant on paper…_but what was it?_

"Junah, your highness. Princess Junah of Saudi Arabia." Junah met her eyes and the Queen felt herself sway. Junah's eyes were the deepest brown she'd ever seen. They were so dark that they almost seemed to shine, to twinkle even.

"A lovely name, Princess Junah." Elsa felt herself giving a warm smile; she liked how the name sounded aloud. "Of course, you are free to roam all of the castle grounds as you like. In fact, if you should so wish, I could give you a tour myself."

Both Junah and Elsa were surprised by the unexpectedly personal offer. It wasn't exactly every day that the chance to be escorted around by a Queen was presented, and especially not so suddenly. Elsa began to worry she had been too forward.

"Or, if you had already made plans for your evening, then you shouldn't mind, I mean, I'm sure you're busy already, prefer to continue with how you, ahh, were." She could feel the blush deepening on her cheeks and wanted to curse her loose tongue. It wasn't usual for Elsa to ramble when she was nervous, that was a trait far more attributed to her sister. She was about to attempt another try at speaking when Junah gently raised a hand.

"Your Majesty, it would be an honor if I could accompany you."

* * *

**In my research it was made clear that in modern times it is inappropriate to make direct eye contact with Arab women (obviously not if you're friends/family/etc). It was a bit confusing detailing Elsa's reception of her guests because everything relevant now points to friendly handshakes and cheek kisses, however I think that's more for men-men and also not in line with royalty and the time period I'm writing about. So anyhow, I'm doing my best to write with a knowledgeable air, but forgive me and correct me if/when I blunder.**  
**"Junah", by the way, means "The Sun"**


End file.
